Rail-joint.



8. F. MALOTT.

RAIL JOINT.

APPLICATION mm run. 24. I911.

Patented Mar. 5, 1918.

2 SHEETS-SHEET I.

INVENTOR ATTORNEY B. F. MALOTT.

RAH. JOINT. I APPLICATION mm MAIL, I917.

Patented Mar. 5, 1918.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2- INVENTUR WITNESSES I mgwzazm/ A'r'rommr UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

BENJAMIN F. MALOTT, OF GREENVILLE, SOUTH CAROLINA, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-FOURTH TO JAMES A. NORRIS, OF PELZER, SOUTH CAROLINA.

RAIL-JOINT.

Application filed March 24, 1917.

1 '0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, BENJAMIN F. MALOTT, a citizen of the United States, residing at reenvillc, in the county of Greenville and State of South Carolina, have invented new and useful Improvements in Rail-Joints, of which the following is a specification.

The present invention relates to improvements in rail joints.

In. carrying out my invention it is my purpose to join the meeting ends of two railway rails in a thoroughly effective and practical manner so as to effectively hold the same against sinking or lateral movement, but at the same time providing for a limited longitudinal movement incident to the expansion and contraction of the rails.

It is also my purpose to produce a joint for two rails of the ordinary construction, by so cutting the ends of the said rails as to provide an interlocking engagement therebetween and to further arrange upon the ends of the rails a chair member with which the rails co-act in such a manner as to insure the positive alineinent of the said rails against danger of either lateral or vertical displacement and without the employment of the usual fish plates and the connecting means therefor passing through the webs of the rails.

It is a still further object of the invention to produce a. rail joint wherein the meeting ends of the rails are such as to (lo-engage one with the other and to provide a joint chair of a novel construction having a flange upon its outer face engaging with the rails whereby to insure the rails against tilting in an outward direction and also whereby to positively hold the "ails against movement in. any direction except in a limited longitudinal direction.

With the above and other objects in view the improvement resides in the construction, combination and arrangement of parts set forth in the following specification and falling within the scope of the appended claim.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is :1V perspective view of the improrement,

Fig. 2 is a sectional view approximately on the line 22 of Fig. 1,

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of one of the rail ends,

Fig. 4 is a similar View of the co-acting rail end,

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Mar. 5, 1918.

Serial No. 157,154.

Fig. 5 is a perspective view of the joint chair, and

Fig. 6 is a perspective view of a modified form of the chair member.

The rail 1 has its head and web projecting a suitable distance beyond the base flange thereof, the said web being also cut to provide a depending lug 3 formed in a line with the end of the head and being further out to provide a slot or opening 1 arranged inwardly of the lug 3 and the innor wall of the said opening at is in a line with the end of the base flange of the rail, while the lower edge of the lug 3 is arranged approximately central of the web of the rail.

The rail 2 has its web and base flange extending a suitable distance beyond its head, and the web in a line with the end of the head is cut away to provide a depression or opening 5 of a sine to receive the lug 3 of the rail 1, while the outer corner of the webof said rail 9 is thus provided with a lug 6 which is adapted to be received in the opening 1 in the rail 1. It is, of course, to be understood that sufficient play is arranged between the lugs and the openings in which they are received to permit of the limited longitudinal movement of the rails, incident to the contraction and expansion thereof, but the outer edges of the lugs rests one upon the lower wall provided by the opening 5 and the other against the under face of the head of the rail 1, as clearly disclosed by the drawings.

The base flanges of the rails 1 and 2, to the opposite sides of the ends thereof are provided with spaced notches 7-7 which are adapted when the rails are assembled to aline with similar notches 8 formed adjacent the opposite ends of the base plate 5) of the chair member 10. The chair 10, upon its inner edge is formed with a right angular flange 11 and upon its outer edge with a vertically extending portion 13 terminating in an angular flange 1 1, and if desired, the said angular flange may have its inner edge formed with a vertically extending plate 15 as illustrated in Fig. (3 of the drawings. The distance between the flanges 11 and 13 approximately equals the width of the base flanges of the rails 1 and 2 and the flange 11 is preferably constructed of spring material whereby the same will yield to permit of the rails being inserted into the chair, and which will also cause the frictional engagement between the said flange 11 and the flange 13 when the rails are received upon the chair either when inserted into the chair or the chair moved longitudinally over first one of the rails and then brought likewise to engage with the other rail end; The angular flange 14: is provided with openings 16 alining with the openings 8 arranged in the base 9 of the chair and disposed below the said flange l4, and spikes 17 are passed through the openings in the chair and the notches in the edges of the base flanges of the rails, the said spikes entering the ties 2, as illustrated in the drawings.

From the above description, taken in connection with the drawings, the simplicity of the device, as well as the advantages thereof will, it is thought, be perfectly apparent to those skilled in the art to which such invention appertains without further detailed description.

Having thus described the invention, what I claim is:

A rail chair comprising a plate of uniform thickness throughout its area, said plate having a plane rectangular base portion and provided at one edge thereof with an upstanding flange which extends from end to end of the base portion and which lies in a plane at a right angle to the plane of the base portion, said base portion having at its opposite edge an upstanding vertical portion which extends from end to end of sald base portion and which 18 parallel with said flange and of the same vertical length as the flange, the said vertical portion merging at its upper portion into an inwardly disposed flange which is inclined with relation to the plane of the base portion, the inner part of the last mentioned flange merging into a tioned flange and the plate section being spaced and disconnected from the base portion thereby roviding room and space at one side of the chair whereby it may he forced laterally and spring in position under and about the meeting ends of adjacent rails without separatingor disturbing the alinement of the rails, the said base portlon being provided 1n the vicinlty of the first mentioned flange with spike openings and in the vicinity oi the said vertical portion with similar openings, and the second mentioned flange having spike openings which register vertically with the last mentioned spike openings in the base portion.

In testimony whereof I my signaturesoe BENJAMIN r. MALOTT.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the "Commissioner of Patents,

, Washington, D. C. 

